Defiant discus thrower Lawrence Okoye vowed to use his thrilling comeback season as a springboard for Olympic and world success after winning a historic European bronze medal in Munich.

The Loughborough-based star, 30, took almost a decade away from athletics to play in the NFL after a disappointing 12th-place finish in the final at London 2012.

But after bursting back onto the scene three years ago, Okoye made history on Friday by becoming the first British athlete to win a European discus medal.

Okoye also won silver at the Commonwealth Games and insists his memorable summer marks only the start of his discus journey.

Okoye, who threw a season’s best of 67.14m to haul himself onto the podium behind Mykolas Alekna and Kristja Ceh, said: “To come back after missing all those years and missing all those opportunities to get better and be where I am now makes it all the more sweeter.

“To win a medal at the Commonwealth Games and Europeans too makes me believe that I can go on to do even more – the world and Olympics in the next couple of years.

“I’ve just got to keep grinding, keep improving because everyone else is going to too, and hopefully, get it done.

“It's been a tough year for me in a lot of ways and to do what I did today just meant the world to me.

“It's not something that I can describe. To medal in this field after some of the things I've been experiencing, I couldn't really hold it back.

“I think the Commonwealths showed me what's possible and it opened my eyes to a whole new world.

“Being on that podium, there's no feeling like it and I just wanted to get back there again.

“I said back then that would be a breakthrough moment for me, and it looks like it has been.”

Okoye returned to athletics in 2019 after a turbulent few years at multiple NFL teams.

He represented Team GB in Tokyo at last summer’s Olympic Games – where he failed to make the final – before also being unable to advance at last month’s World Championships in Oregon.

But he soared towards silverware in Birmingham this month as an effort of 64.99m secured a scintillating silver medal.

Okoye duelled it out against a top-class field in Munich this week and was able to extend his sparkling summer with bronze behind Lithuanian Alekna and Slovenian star Ceh.

He added: “Everybody that throws discus knows I've had a big throw in me for a long time, and it felt great to get it out.

“Obviously, I wish I could have gone a bit further, but this is hopefully the start of big things for me.

“I’ve struggled all season and haven’t really been able to find my form - I got injured three times and had a lot of things that have stopped me from giving my best performance.

“But to get it out today means a lot to me.”

The multi-sport European Championships Munich 2022, featuring Athletics, Beach Volleyball, Canoe Sprint, Cycling, Gymnastics, Table Tennis, Triathlon, Rowing, Sport Climbing, took place between 11th-21st August on the 50th anniversary of the Olympics Games in the German city. Daily live coverage was across BBC One, Two, Red Button, BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website